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“As soon as she can provide a marriage certificate and a positive pregnancy test, he says the money is yours.”
“And Lily?”
“Wants Emma to know she’s safe.”
“I’ll tell her. Keep me updated if you hear anything else.”
I hang up and turn my attention back to Emma. She’s still where I left her, frozen to the spot.
“Where’s Lily?” she asks. “Is she all right?”
“Fine. When Luca’s dead, you can both go home, how’s that sound?”
“You told me I had to marry you. What changed?”
“Nothing’s changed but if Luca’s dead, I inherit the lot whether I’m married or not. As soon as I hear he’s dead, I’ll pay you the million, clear your father’s debts, and you can get on with your life.
“Spend it on whatever you want. Meanwhile, we can enjoy our time together.” I reach out with my hand toward her but my phone bursts into life.
Reluctantly, I retrieve it from my pocket, already knowing who’s on the other end before I even glance at the caller ID.
I answer, placing the phone to my ear, Emma’s eyes still fixed on me. “Luca,” I say. “Going to do us all a favor and kill yourself?”
He giggles down the line. “Funny, I was going to say the same thing.” There’s a venom to his words and I wish I could reach through the phone and strangle the son of a bitch. “You know I’m going to get the lot so why not just quit now and tell Charles you relinquish your claim?”
I can almost picture the smug grin on his face, the way he must be lounging in some dimly lit room, surrounded by sycophants who hang on his every word like gospel.
“I hope you didn’t pay too much for those hitmen of yours,” I reply, my voice calm.
I can practically hear the gears turning in his head, trying to come up with a retort that matches his inflated sense of cunning.
“How’d you know I sent them? Sure you’ve made plenty of enemies in the past, seeing as you’re such a huge asshole.”
“Don’t bullshit me. I know you sent them but they failed. I’m going to enjoy watching the cartel rip you to pieces.”
He sniggers again. “The board is set, and the pieces are moving. You think you’re playing chess, but I’ve been playing checkers all along—faster to the endgame.
“I’ll get my wife pregnant and kill you just for fun anyway. That frigid bitch you’ve got your eye on won’t even have got her panties wet by then. Maybe send her my way, let me show her how a real man works.”
“How you going to get her pregnant when you’re shooting blanks?”
It’s a gamble, but his response tells me Matteo got it right. “That’s a lie,” he says, his voice cold as ice.
It’s my turn to laugh. “Your desperation is showing. Hiring those two to do your dirty work, indebting yourself further to the cartel... It’s sloppy.”
There’s a moment of silence, and I know I’ve hit a nerve. Luca’s reliance on others to fight his battles has always been his weakness, a fact I’m more than happy to exploit. “Why all this animosity?” he says, false happiness in his voice. “Can’t we just get along? Split it fifty fifty.”
“You killed my first girlfriend,” I reply in a perfectly level tone. “Or did you forget that?”
“That was never proved.”
“You ratted out Matteo and he spent five years inside.”
“You can’t prove that either.”
“Maybe not, but we both know I’m telling the truth. No deals. No negotiating. You back down or you die.”
“I’ll enjoy pissing on your grave,” he replies. “Oh, and be sure to send me an invite to the wedding, won’t you?”
